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The Pentagon has officially accepted the talented $400 million luxury jumbo jet from Qatar, which will be used as a plane for the US president, despite bipartisan concerns about ethics and safety.
Donald Trump wants to use the aircraft as an air force, but Boeing completes two new jets that have been long behind, but the gifts need to be revised before flying the president.
“The Secretary of Defense has accepted the Boeing 747 from Qatar in accordance with all federal rules and regulations,” Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement Wednesday.
“The Department of Defense will strive to ensure that appropriate security measures and functional measurement requirements for aircraft used to transport US presidents are taken into consideration.”
An Air Force spokesperson said: “We are preparing to award a contract to change the Boeing 747 for Executive Aeroft. Details related to the contract are classified.” The Air Force, which is responsible for modifying the plane, did not respond to questions about how long it would take to complete the process.
Those who were explained about the lecture added that the deal had not been finalized and that even if the US officially accepts the plane, “details are working on it.”
Democrats are deeply criticising Jet’s acceptance. U.S. Rep. Kelly Morrison described the gift as “rotting gaze.”
Sen. Tammy Duckworth, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said Tuesday that he was worried that there was a “very realistic operational security risk” from accepting such gifts from foreign governments and that “there could be a reduction in corners with operational security.” Sen. Masie Fyrono, who also sat on the committee, said Trump “we could even use the dodd to accept it and call it laundry.”
Some Republicans have expressed similar concerns. “This deal hits me with a lot of political spy, ethical and constitutional issues,” Sen. Susan Collins told NBC News last week.
Trump accepted the Boeing 747 on Wednesday and said it was “great” at a bilateral meeting with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in his oval office. He also said that the plane was “not for me, and the US Air Force (but) had been given so that we could help us.”
Last week, Trump said it was “silly” to say, “No, I don’t want a free, very expensive plane.”
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The US president was also “a little late” to swipe at Boeing to deliver two Air Force one-jets during production. Aerospace and defense companies have long been targets of Trump’s rage.
While testifying before the Armed Services Commission on Tuesday, new Air Force Secretary Troy Meik said the plane had requested “significant modifications” to become one of the new Air Forces, but the Air Force is well located to make the necessary changes.
Qatar Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani defended the government’s move on Tuesday, claiming it was not bribery and said the arrangement was “normal things happening among allies.” “I don’t know why they think this is considered bribery or Qatar wants to buy influence in this regime.”
Additional Reports by Andrew England in London
